The present invention relates to graphical user interfaces for data processing devices and, more particularly, to a graphical user interface for a data processing network that includes appliances.
Steadily increasing numbers of home appliances are being equipped with digital microcontrollers. While improved performance is typically the reason for incorporating digital control in an appliance, the availability of home appliances with data processing capability has led to recognition that appliances could be connected in a network and controllable from remote locations within the home and from outside the home, such as from an office, or a cellular phone. An appliance network might also be connected to other networks such as the World Wide Web (the “web”), a security system, or an entertainment system. In addition to the convenience of remotely controlling an appliance's operation, networking facilitates remote monitoring of an appliance's performance by a repair organization and promotes safety by warning remote users of potentially dangerous conditions related to the appliance. For the same or similar reasons, devices intended for a particular purpose or use, whether a typical home appliance or not, may be networked in schools, businesses, or other environments.
While appliance networks have the potential to increase convenience and safety, traditional appliance users may find it difficult to conceptualize an appliance network because the function of the network differs from that of the appliances. In addition, appliance networks are principally communication networks and the invisibility of communication further increases the difficulty of conceptualizing interaction between two appliances. For example, checking the status of drying clothes from a display on a microwave oven is not intuitive. An appliance network may also be connected to the Internet with access to e-commerce or other web sites. Users may find it difficult to navigate the Internet and to understand how to achieve a desired objective at a web site through interaction with an appliance.
Graphical user interfaces (GUI) for data processing systems utilize icons to represent physical objects and often a metaphorical representation of the system to aid the user's navigation. For example, a prevalent GUI for personal computers includes icons representing virtual file folders to metaphorically represent the data stored on the computer. However, such GUIs represent the internal data structure of a computing device or program such as a game but are not useful for aiding understanding of the operation of and communication within a network comprising a multiplicity of appliances with disparate functions and operating characteristics.
What is desired, therefore, is a user interface for an appliance network that facilitates understanding the network and the effects of the user's interaction with the network.